Web page viewing, sending and receiving of email, ticket reservations, music data distribution, game program distribution, and other types of application service are recently being provided using Internet access from mobile communication terminals with Web browsing capabilities. Gamers can connect to a game server on a network from a mobile communication terminal and play online games by downloading a game screen by communication with a game server via HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol).
With conventional online games, when a gamer connects to a game server to play a soccer game or other such competitive game, the gamer competes with a computer. As with a soccer game, a game in which the progress of the game varies depending on the leadership role of the coach strongly reflects the individuality of the coach, making the game more enjoyable when the gamer competes with an actual person, as opposed to competing with the computer.
Internet discussion boards, mailing lists, and the like are used as forums to provide communication for gamers, but these discussion boards, mailing lists, and the like are supervised by site managers and are not provided by the gamers. Therefore, it can be expected that communication among the gamers can be stimulated by providing a homepage exclusively for gamers.
In the past, gamers could not know of the level of popularity of a game in a video arcade, the number of players, video arcades with competitive gamers, video arcades with many gamers at a similar level, video arcades with many skilled gamers, or the like without actually going to the video arcade, and therefore gamers could not determine the situation of the video arcade in advance.
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of simulating the sensation of playing with a live person. Another object of the present invention is to provide a technique for stimulating communication among gamers and for providing an incentive for gamers to participate. Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a technique for providing an incentive for gamers to participate by providing information about business conditions of gaming establishments and about gamers playing at those establishments.